UHM Student Receives Morris K. Udall Scholarship

Pualani Gandall Yamamoto, an undergraduate student in the Nursing Program at the University of Hawaiʻi at Manoa, was recently awarded the Morris K. Udall Scholarship. The one-year scholarship will cover the cost of tuition, fees, books, and room and board up to a maximum of $5,000 a year.

The Morris K. Udall Foundation was established by the U.S. Congress in 1992 to honor Morris King Udall's thirty years of service in the House of Representatives. All Udall Scholars are undergraduate students majoring in fields related to the environment, Native Hawaiian health or Native American health and tribal policy, and effective public policy conflict resolution.Yamamoto was one of 80 students selected by the Foundation‘s Board of Trustees for 2001. She was one of only two University of Hawai‘i students nominated for this scholarship and the only student from the state of Hawai‘i awarded a $5000 scholarship to be used at a 4-year institution during the 2001 - 2002 school year. In August, Yamamoto will travel to Tucson, Arizona where her award will be formally presented at the Scholar Orientation.

The Udall Scholars were selected from a field of over 500 students whom the faculties of nationwide colleges and universities nominated. The Udall committee also examines academic achievements as well as public service, community activities and other honors and awards.

Dr. Lee Putnam in Student Services nominated Yamamoto for the scholarship. She was then required to fill out an application and write an essay. The essay assignment was to select a significant speech, legislative act or public policy statement made by Congressman Udall, and discuss its impact on her field of interest. Yamamoto‘s essay, entitled "Malama i ka Pono" (Cherish the Harmony), examined some of the parallels between Native Americans and Native Hawaiians using Udall‘s speech "The American Indians and Civil Rights."

Yamamoto is a member of the Student Nursing Organization and serves as second vice president for the Hawaii Student Nurse Association. She was also the Corresponding Secretary for Phi Theta Kappa International Honor Society at Kap‘iolani Community College last semester when she applied for the scholarship. "I know that many of the accomplishments as corresponding secretary are what helped me to attain the award," says Yamamoto.

She just completed her first year of a 3-year program in the UHM School of Nursing and is also the recipient of a $1000 Coca Cola Scholarship based on volunteer work and academic merit. Yamamoto is currently using this scholarship to attend summer school.